


Family in Unlikely Places

by Here_Be_Hyperfixations



Series: JayKyle Week 2020 [3]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Green Lantern - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Young Justice - All Media Types
Genre: Damian Wayne Needs a Hug, Day 3: Accidental Baby Acquisition, Dick Grayson Needs a Hug, Discord: JayKyle Week 2020, Jason Todd Needs A Hug, Jason Todd and Damian Wayne Meet in the League of Assassins, JayKyle Week (DCU), Kyle Rayner Needs A Hug, M/M, No Edit We Die Like My Sanity, Same Verse As "Friends in Unlikely Places", no beta we die like jason todd
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:40:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26866780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Here_Be_Hyperfixations/pseuds/Here_Be_Hyperfixations
Summary: JayKyle Week 2020Day 3: Accidental Baby Acquisition
Relationships: Dick Grayson & Damian Wayne, Dick Grayson & Jason Todd, Jason Todd & Damian Wayne, Kyle Rayner & Damian Wayne, Kyle Rayner & Dick Grayson, Kyle Rayner & Jason Todd, Kyle Rayner/Jason Todd
Series: JayKyle Week 2020 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1956223
Comments: 12
Kudos: 222





	Family in Unlikely Places

**Author's Note:**

> A sequel to "Friends in Unlikely Places"  
> >:)

It had been several months since Kyle had started meeting with his savior in secret. Usually Red would find him on one of his quieter missions, armed with food and information for the lantern to take back to his team. Despite the more professional aspects, the two boys were anything but. They teased one another, trading stories and gossip about their ridiculous friends. Other times, they would just sit in comfortable silence, Kyle with his sketchbook, and Red with whatever old piece of literature he had dug up.

Occasionally Red would even let Kyle draw him as he read. The lantern would spend hours fixated on his companion, sketching his scarred face, his slightly curly hair, his animated hands and expressions…his captivating eyes…

Ok, M’gann was right…Kyle had a crush.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t do anything about it. No matter how much he wanted to kiss him, Kyle knew that Red wouldn’t accept, even if it was mutual. He was completely dedicated to his goal.

And there was also the issue of his identity. After several meetings, observing Red’s reactions to specific topics, Kyle knew who he was. He’d seen the old photos Dick pulled out when he was particularly tipsy on certain days of the year, and he has Red’s face burned into his mind. He knew the assassin was the ‘deceased’ second Robin. He just didn’t know how to bring it up.

Once in a blue moon, Red would contact him directly. Those always came with specific coordinates and instructions for Kyle to follow. And no matter what, Red was always there before him, waiting. This particular meeting was one of those times.

At least it was supposed to be.

Red had yet to show his face. Kyle had been waiting for hours on some rooftop in New York. It was cold, with winds freezing the lantern’s bones. He wondered if the assassin was even going to show up at all…

Had he gotten the coordinates wrong? No, no, maybe Red just forgot, or something came up and he never got the message. But that was so unlike him.

He tried to quell the fear and anxiety crawling up his spine.

Just as Kyle was about to leave, a hooded figure stumbled out of the darkness. It was him – the assassin the young lantern had been waiting nearly three hours for. He was clad in his usual red tunic, mask obscuring his face. Yet this time…something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong…

~~Jason~~ \- _Red’s_ chest was heaving, and he was curled in on himself, clutching a bundle tightly to his chest. His mask was cracked, and his visible eye was wild, glowing bright neon green. Kyle closed the distance between them. Red, composed, lax Red was never like this.

Just as the lantern grabbed the assassin’s arm, the bundle shifted. A tiny hand reached up, and a small coo sounded from the fabric.

A baby.

Red had a baby with him…

Kyle stared down at the small child tucked securely in soft blankets. On second glance he was more of a toddler than a baby. He had black hair, tanned skin, and pudgy cheeks. Wide green eyes blinked open to flick up to Red’s face and he glanced at Kyle apprehensively.

“You said…you said I could trust you…”

Red’s voice sounded strained, exhausted…desperate. He looked ready to topple over, and it was just then that Kyle noticed the dark stain on his side. A stab wound. He gripped the assassin tighter, steadying him.

“Red, what happened? Why do you have a kid with you?”

“Talia al Ghul…and Bruce Wayne’s son…I needed to get him out before everything collapsed…”

“Bruce Wayne? As in _Batman_ Bruce Wayne? What the hell-”

“Yeah.”

Red flinched at the mention of Bruce. It was a subtle thing that normally Kyle wouldn’t have picked up…but he was hyper-focused on Red right now.

“Kyle, I need you t’take him to Gra-Grayson. _Please_ ,” Red wobbled a bit, “I don’t have much time here, and Damian needs to get somewhere safe.”

_“Akhi…”_

The toddler looked up at Red, gripping him tighter.

“Ok, ok...I’ve got him.”

Red looked down at Damian, the two talking softly in what sounded like Arabic. The toddler sounded increasingly upset, and Red’s voice trembled as he spoke. Kyle took the child from Red, adjusting his hold until Damian was snuggly tucked in his arms. He didn’t look happy about being removed from his caretaker. Tears welled in his eyes and he began to wail, small hands reaching out to grab at Red’s bloodstained tunic.

_“Akhi, akhi laa…”_

Red tensed at the sound, hand reaching up to meet the toddler before falling back down to his side.

“What’s gonna happen to you?”

“I have t’go back, t’clean up this mess…”

“ _What_ ,” Kyle wanted to shout, he really did, but he didn’t want to upset the kid even more, “that’s a terrible idea. Come back to the team with me. They can help you…”

_And they can help him finally solve the mystery of Red’s identity_.

“No can do, Rayner…I’ve got people I can’t let down. Please, just – just get Damian out of here…”

Red turned away, grapple aimed at one of the taller buildings. Before he could shoot, before he could disappear again, Kyle grabbed his arm, yanking him back.

“I’ll come find you.”

“Rayner, you don’t have t-”

“Jason…”

Red’s eye widened as he tensed up. His spine was straight, body deathly still.

“…you knew…”

“I suspected it,” Kyle reached up to ~~Red’s~~ Jason’s cheek, “I promise I’ll find you, ok?”

Jason held Kyle’s hand, leaning into the contact. Kyle wanted to take that mask off, to see his face, but he couldn’t.

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep lantern.”

His voice trembled, and he could see Jason’s eye redden a bit, tears gathering in the corner. Kyle leaned forward, bringing their foreheads together. Unwavering green met teal.

“Well, it’s a good thing I plan to keep this one, isn’t it?”

They stood in silence for a moment – one that somehow felt like a far too short eternity. Then something caught Jason’s attention and just like that, he was gone, soaring in the shadows between buildings. Damian screamed after him. His tiny body desperately tried to wiggle free, to follow his caretaker. Kyle merely gripped him tighter, bouncing him a bit to stifle the sobs. Eventually, Damian quieted, turning his face into the lantern’s neck.

He was completely silent the whole way back to base.

-

“Hey, good to have you ba-” Conner stopped, eyes wide as he stared at Kyle, “…is…is that a baby with you?”

“Get Nightwing.”

Kyle passed his friend. He needed to get down to the med bay. Conner tried following after him, keeping pace with Kyle’s long strides down the hall.

“Get. Nightwing. Now.” He tried to keep his voice calm, but what the fuck was he supposed to do? Jason was injured, apparently, this was Batman’s kid, and he had no clue what the hell he was going to tell Dick.

The truth. He was going to tell him the truth.

Conner thankfully got the idea. He flew off in the other direction, over towards the mess hall and bedrooms. Kyle continued his way down to the medical facilities, ignoring anything else in his path. He readjusted his hold on his delicate cargo. Damian must have fallen asleep on the way over, his red-rimmed eyes were closed, and his breathing was steady and deep.

Once he reached the med bay, he set the kid down on one of the beds, making sure the pillows prevented him from falling off. He took a hair strand. Thankfully, his time with Young Justice had in fact taught him how to check DNA samples. The hair was slid into a test tube, then inserted in the analysis thingy (Kyle had no clue what it was called). He set the computer to test for matches between Bruce Wayne and Talia al Ghul. How they managed to have her DNA on file…he really didn’t want to know.

Loud, light steps echoed through the hall, racing towards medical. Dick slammed into the room, eyes locked on Kyle, then turning to their guest.

“What happened?”

“I went to see Red…” he muttered, “it sounds like something big is happening with the League of Assassins. He gave me the kid – Damian – and told me to get him to you.”

Kyle turned to face Dick.

“He said Damian was Bruce and Talia’s kid.”

Dick paled, mouth dropping open as he stared at the computer screen. He removed the mask over his eyes.

“How…”

“I don’t know, dude. I’m doing DNA matching now, so we should have our answer soon. Kid’s asleep by the way.”

“Ok, ok…” he sighed, sitting next to the sleeping toddler, “huh, he really does look like Bruce…they’ve got the same expression.”

Damian’s nose had scrunched up in sleep, small, black eyebrows furrowing as he turned more into the soft pillows. He clutched the blanket, mumbling a bit. Dick cooed softly, a small tired smile on his face.

The computer beeped, and the results popped up…

Match, to both Talia al Ghul…and Bruce Wayne…

“Fuck.”

Dick ran a hand through his hair, shoulders dropping.

“What the hell am I going to tell Bruce?”

Kyle approached the toddler, thumbing at the blanket. He snagged a few red-stained fibers from the soft fabric.

“Simple, that he has a kid. With Talia.”

The lantern removed the tube from the computer, setting it aside to be disinfected later. He took a clean one from the rack and dropped the fibers inside, popping it in the terminal. This was his chance. To confirm once and for all…

He set the match search to ‘Jason Todd’.

“Kyle, what are you doing?”

“I think I know who Red is…I just need to make sure I’m right.”

“He’s a spy in the League, right? Working for a third party? I doubt we have samples on him.”

Dick’s eyes narrowed, piercing blue studying the lantern’s tense posture.

“Kyle. Who are you comparing him to?”

It sounded less like a question and more of a demand. He didn’t want to answer, not until he was absolutely sure. Any sooner, and Dick would probably hate him forever.

“Look, I just…I need you to trust me.”

They waited with bated breath as the computer continued the analysis. Kyle’s heart leaped to his throat.

Foreign DNA compared to Jason Todd, second Robin, deceased.

Perfect match.

Kyle heard a loud thud behind him. Dick had stood from his seat, toppling the plastic chair over. His eyes were wide, and he stared in shock at the screen, head shaking back and forth. Tears welled in his eyes.

“No…no, that’s not possible.”

But DNA doesn’t lie…


End file.
